Phanniemay2016 One-Shots
by joggerwriting
Summary: One-shots about the prompts from Phanniemay2016, even though it isn't May anymore. Credit for prompts goes to Becca from Tumblr. Up now, Summary: Set after TUE. Jazz asked Danny, "How did it happen?" Then after Danny explained the accident to her, she mused. Was it really an accident, or was it fate?
1. Day 18: Frostbite

**Author's Note: It's been years since I wrote a fanfic last, and my writing activities are basically stiff college papers. English is not my first language you see. So, I'm quite sure that you would immediately spot many beginners' mistakes here. But bear with me, ok?**

 **Also, I know that I'm a bit late (ok, _very_ late) in joining the Phanniemay16 challenge. I'm actually quite new to the fandom and am still trying to familiarize myself with what's canon and what's fanon. DP was a fixture in my childhood, but until now I had never imagined that in 2016 (imagine! 2016!) I would totally fall in love with the fandom! And I'm a college student. Yeah. **

**Anyways, I'll be trying to fulfill the last 10 days - or so - of the challenge, as well as adding the previous 17 days to the month of June. I'm not quite sure that this kind of story (drabbles) needs the use of a Beta reader, though I know how horrendous my English could be. Therefore, on a personal level I definitely need one, but if anyone knows, please let me know if a Beta reader is necessary for this story.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Summary: The story of Frostbite is more than just about the cheerful leader of the Far Frozen and mentor to the "Great One". For their reputation as a fearsome and warrior-like tribe in the Zone, Frostbite was conspicuously absent during "Reign Storm". How would it relate to their adulation of Danny afterward?**

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 **Day Eighteen: Frostbite**

 _"_ _Fear is natural, Danny Phantom. Charging into battle despite the fear is what makes someone a hero."_

Frostbite in _Urban Jungle_

It was thirty moons after his inauguration as the leader of his people when Frostbite of the Far Frozen heard the devastating news of Pariah Dark awakening from his Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep. The ghosts have known the story too well: of the one who was once king of all ghosts, and of the ruthless and malevolent reign of power which had transformed the Zone into a much more living hell that would make the present one a paradise in comparison. The inhabitants of the Far Frozen had started to settle into the comfortable, tribal existence they were living in. Nevertheless, they were sorely tempted to follow the immediate course of action taken by some of the more prominent inhabitants of the Zone, which was to seek refuge in the human world.

The chilliest area of the Ghost Zone was equipped by a battalion of cyrokinetic warriors, capable of providing an icy defense against intruders. Plus, they had prided themselves as pioneers of technology and advanced medical facilities among the ghosts. Yet, Frostbite had no illusion that when it came down to fighting the Dark King and his fearsome skeleton armies, they would face the very real possibility of being annihilated. Thus the inhabitants of the Far Frozen did not flee. No, they refused to even consider fleeing as an option – they were reputable warriors after all – they would stand their ground and faced whatever came their way, preferably with subzero temperature giant walls of defense.

Then one of Frostbite's scouts came bearing the news of Dark's invasion to Amity Park, a city of the Other World which is one of the areas where the barrier between both realms is at its weakest. Ironically, that was where some of the Zone's occupants had been fleeing towards. Far Frozen breathed a collective sigh of relief for a moment. It was short-lived however, as the realization that the human world, much less a mere single city, was only capable of handling the Ghost King for just a moment. Ghosts, even equipped with their extraordinary abilities, had proven to be only an insignificant barrier against the might of the King. Why would there be any hope for the human world? In the midst of the crushing hopelessness, Frostbite wished for his dear afterlife existence that both worlds would survive Dark's wrath, for he knew that the Ghost Zone was only the proverbial flip side of the coin to the human world.

The Far Frozen had stood still and alert in their chilling isolation for another moon, when suddenly there was a ripple in the ectoplasmic atmosphere. It was the sign that there was a dimensional displacement happening right within the Zone. Later on, Frostbite and his people would know that it was the result of the whole city of Amity Park being displaced right into their realm. However at the moment, the entire Ghost Zone held its breath as they felt – rather than saw – that what was happening would decide the fate of their world. Then it was suddenly over. The fleeing ghosts started to come back – and those who had fled to Amity Park had a very interesting story to tell.

The inhabitants of the Zone would very much like to think that they were above such mundane things as shameless gossip-mongering. They were essentially dead for a long time after all – some even reaching centuries. There were usually other things to worry about, such as the glorious task of fulfilling their individual obsessions (for the more ardent of ghosts) or trying to make an honest living as what the humans dubbed as ectoplasmic entities. Frostbite and his people would categorize themselves into the latter category, and so far they do enjoy their current after-life as centuries pass. But it was the gossips and rumors which heralded what would be the greatest tale in Far Frozen in their long lifetimes.

Three moons passed before Frostbite decided it was safe to lower their defense. Ice warriors were still situated at the border but the general feeling was that the threat had passed. They could see it in the changing atmosphere and feel it within their cold cores. It was around that time Far Frozen, being the isolated area it was, received the account of what happened through the grapevine; a whisper of one being who had put into an end the looming shadow of Pariah Dark's reign.

It was an absurd rumor – and Frostbite would rather shave his fur rather than falling for it.

Yet, the whispers only grew, and what was constant is the name Danny Phantom. Frostbite did not know what to make of it. Was Danny Phantom a ghost? A human? Hadn't he heard that name before when there was a big jailbreak in Walker's domain? As his curiosity grew, Frostbite sent a few of the Far Frozen's best scouts to get the truth out of the rumors.

What he found was truly astounding.

It was true. A warrior had managed to put the Pariah Dark back to sleep quite single-handedly. The ex-refugees from Amity Park had witnessed the event. They even helped in battling the skeleton army! Even more staggering was the fact that the warrior was the rumored new halfa – one of the only two in existence – who was still in the cusp of learning and adapting to his powers.

Frostbite and the yeti-ghosts of Far Frozen knew a true warrior deserving of respect when they saw one. Danny Phantom is such a warrior.

So the tale goes on to be passed from one mouth to another, and as a heroic legend of the Savior of the Ghost Zone in the bedtime stories of any upstanding yeti ghost-children. Statues courtesy of ice sculpting were being made. Drawings and writings on the walls were drawn to depict the accounts of the battle as much as they could with the information they got. For the Far Frozen, Danny Phantom is since then heralded as their hero. After all, the whole Far Frozen is sufficiently aware of the ramifications of what could happen if the Ghost King had not been stopped in Amity Park.

Nevertheless, their warrior pride was wounded when knowing that they were wrong to give up hope in the first place by barricading themselves inside their ice fortress. And the fact that the fleeing ghosts were helping the battle makes it even more of a blow. Frostbite then swore that he and his fellow tribal ghosts would not make the same mistake again. They would not let their fears prevent them from participating. After all, they, the guardian of the Infi-Map, should have at least helped when the battle commenced, instead of sitting duck behind their defense. But no, they had let a fateful battle passed, and Danny Phantom fighting beside the ill-equipped refugees from the Zone.

Due to this experience, Far Frozen, the chilliest land of the Zone, is much more hospitable than it usually is when Danny and his friends crash-landed on its border.

Due to this experience, Frostbite was willing to offer Danny his whole nation at Danny's disposal.

Due to this experience, Frostbite was willing to trust Danny with the Infi-Map, an artifact predating the Ancients' time with the power rivaling even the Ring of Rage.

Due to this experience, the Far Frozen has made itself a second home and a place of refuge for Danny.

And as for Danny, he has so far done nothing to refute the immense trust Frostbite has placed on him. So when Danny came to his land to train his cyrokinesis, after Amity Park was overrun by Undergrowth, Frostbite knew immediately the right words to say to lift the young halfa's despondent spirit.

After all, Danny has given Frostbite the lesson that a hero must always believe that he may win, and when Danny left to battle Undergrowth in Amity Park, Frostbite was confident that his ice powers are put into a good offense.


	2. Day 19: Fave Outfit

**Author's Note: In my excitement to finally be** ** _productive_** **in this site yesterday, I completely forgot to put the disclaimer. Thankfully, there was no prosecutor waving "copyright infringement!"outside my window ...yet.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom (I do follow Butch Hartman's instagram account though. Waiting...waiting...waiting...). Nickelodeon and Mr. Hartman owns the rights (and the authority to revive the show!)**

 **So there.**

 **Summary: An attempted insight on our favorite green blob beneath the metallic _outfit._ How Skulker was determined to be the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter.**

* * *

 **Day 19: Fave Outfit**

 **"What?! I'm not small! It's the world that's too big!"**

 _Hiromu Arakawa_

After he died, his memory of his previous life was scarce. He was floating in a new world - a world with energy-charged neon sky and rocky formations dotting the otherwise great and barren chasm of nothingness. His form felt less firm, as in it was in a state of confusion over a fluid or gaseous form. Somewhere within his consciousness, he knew that his form was solidifying into something suitable for his ordained purpose in this new world.

As he was floating in the greenish wilderness, something swam in his peripheral vision. And suddenly, he was overcome by the desire to _hunt;_ to collect as much as he could; and to pursue that immediate prey who had kindly swum in his vicinity. So he took off.

But the universe decided to screw up with him one last time, even in his after-life. His final form was neither fit nor equipped to fulfill his desire, his _obsession_ , because he found himself looking at the small green blob that was his body. His prey did not even notice it had been targeted, or that the aspiring hunter had stopped targeting it to examine his body, rather disbelievingly. Yet, there was a fire burning in his _very_ core - something so strong that he was not sure he had experienced in his previous life - and it lit up his determination as the greenish glow around his body brightened.

Skulker, the future self-proclaimed Ghost Zone's greatest hunter, was nothing but determined and persistent. Those were the two traits crucial to every hunter.

The thing about obsession was that it enforced a single-mindedness quality for most ghosts. This could be either good or bad depending on how it happened. For Skulker, his obsession brought him to scour the depths of the Ghost Zone for a way - _any_ way really that he could afford to compensate for his pitiful form. Nevertheless of how pitiful it was, his form had helped him innumerable times as he was regarded as not worthy being a threat. As such, the green blob flew through even the most dangerous corners of the Zone. His green body camouflaged his track across the sky.

Years passed by. It was hard to keep track in the Ghost Zone. Skulker had by then accumulated a collection of scrap metals, pieces of weaponry left over from the Pariah Dark's wars, and an uninhabited floating rock he would christen as his lair. Skulker worked tediously, assembling piece by piece of scrap metals and attaching the most lethal weapons in his collections (he was very lucky to have found the rocket launchers). When he was done, he could stare for his whole afterlife at his new creation, his hunting suit! The fruit of his labor! With meticulous details perhaps only rivaled by the mastery of Nicolai Technus himself!

Thus, Skulker was living the time of his afterlife doing the thing he enjoyed most: hunting. He hunted and hunted, building a fearsome reputation for himself. All kind of ecto-entities, in all shapes and forms (and how variable they were!), from ecto-pusses to ecto-bunnies, would eventually come to be in Skulker's possession for one time after another. Nothing was too slippery for the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter after all.

And as his reputation grew, the inhabitants of the Ghost Zone consequently forgot about the tiny green blob that had once floated aimlessly. Skulker may have the body of a blob, but that did not reflect the core contained within.

To think, that one of the Ghost Zone's strongest ghosts was actually a small green blob.

But hey, isn't Casper High's biggest loser actually moonlighting as the town hero?

That is also probably why when Skulker called Danny Phantom "whelp", he has never meant it as an insult. Because Skulker, out of everyone else, understands how appearance does not define one's ability.


	3. Day 20: Snow

**Disclaimer: I have never professed to own Danny Phantom.**

 **Summary:** **Set after PP. The Fenton family learns why it's a bad idea to bring an ice-powered ghost boy to a hot vacation in the Caribbean. Jazz/Danny bonding and loads of snow!  
**

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 **Day 20: Snow**

Danny gulped down his iced soda greedily.

"You'll get a brain freeze from that you know?"

Danny just rolled his eyes at his sister's remark. "Don't care. It's so damn hot! Whose great idea is it anyway to stay here?" He turned his nose up at the small room, currently cluttered with their excessive baggage. One of them, a bag made of tight nylon, suspiciously followed the vague outline shape of the Fenton bazooka.

"Cheer up, little brother! It's this or the freezing cold back home." Jazz stood up and stretched while abandoning the hostel-provided menu she was holding.

"I actually prefer the cold." Danny spied his parents entering their room after their talk with the hostel attendant. "And I can just fly us back home if you want," he looked hopefully at the adults, "who knows what Sam and Tucker are up to right now."

"Aw, sweetie, a family get-away is fun!" Maddie clasped her hands together. "This is our first trip abroad too as a family. Together."

"Plus," Jack added encouragingly, "we've agreed to take a break from any ghost and ghost-related activities. Isn't that right, Danny-boy?"

Danny's answer was to look meaningfully at the suspicious bag, a movement that his sister copied.

They were huddled in a simple hostel in one island of the Caribbean, where the climate was so different from Amity's usual cold of December. Jazz had just finished her first semester of university, and Danny was in his annual Christmas-New Year holiday from school. The family then decided to have a trip outside of Amity Park, seeing that Danny, even in holiday, did not relent in his activities of patrolling and catching errant ghosts.

Ever since the Disasteroid incident happened several months ago, the ghost hunters had been helping Danny to protect the town. Still, it seemed that the ghosts increased their usual activities, especially after Danny had been dubbed as the world's hero. Simply put, more and more ghosts were attracted to Amity Park, eager to challenge the young hero now that his existence and whereabouts were known to the world.

Amity Park was indeed the most haunted town in America, and it was arguably as well in the world, but that did not mean that ghosts exclusively haunted the town. Now that the world believed that ghosts existed outside of so-called horror stories (even the UN was calling for recognition of ghosts' registration and rights), Amity Park became some sort of beacon for ghosts all over the world. For what purpose, Danny himself was unsure, other than the fact that his free time had been devoted once again to ghost catching. Or, as Danny would have better termed it, "escorting ghost tourists back to their god-damned place because I am _not_ some attraction!"

Geez, with the way the ghosts were acting, one would have thought that Danny had become a celebrity even among ghosts. But Danny had always been one of the only three _halfas_ – two actually now that the Vlad was stranded in a space rock. Unbeknownst to him, the majority of the ghost population, the ones who were usually content being left alone in their haunting places, felt the shift in the air now that the relation between the human world and the ghost world was getting closer than ever. Obviously, some of the more hostile ones opposed the change in the centuries-old _status quo_. Danny had the unfortunate position as the beleaguered halfa right in the eye of the storm.

But for now, his family was determined to make him take a break by getting him into a plane – more like kidnapping him in his sleep (Yes, he woke up seeing a flight attendant asking, "Coffee or tea, sir?") – and relocating the whole family for a 5-day stay somewhere in the Caribbean.

Danny's two consolations were the fact that it was close to the Christmas truce (so that he hoped the ghosts were being a bit lenient to Amity Park), and his parents' rare display of discretion by registering their tickets and accommodation booking somewhat anonymously (he suspected they were the alternate identities they were given courtesy of the reformed Guys in White).

However, this heat was slowly killing his ice-core!

Back to the conversation, Jazz was giggling at her brother's antics. "Wow, Danny. The day's finally come when _Dad_ is even less obsessed with ghosts than you!"

Maddie couldn't help but smile as well. "Your sister's right, Danny. You're the only one not relaxing here." Glancing at her sandal-covered feet, "We should visit the local market this afternoon. I can't believe I forgot to bring my sun block. What do you think, Jack?"

"Oh well, Mads! I'm sure we can go to the market before the beach. Okay, children! Unpack your stuff and then off we go!" With that he sauntered to the bathroom.

"Don't forget to turn the knob right instead of left for the hot water, honey! That man's given us warning that the sign's inverted." Maddie turned to the kids. "Now, I'm off to fetch us brunch. You two behave."

Jazz and Danny relayed their orders to their mom. Then they were left sitting on the beds, the sound of Jack's off-tune singing slightly echoing from the bathroom.

"Everything's gonna be fine, Danny," Jazz turned to her brother, who was staring at the ceiling in a disinterested fashion. "Besides, it's your fault anyway. If we'd just used the Fenton/Phantom fame here, we'd at least have an air conditioned hostel."

"Yeah, and risk getting mobbed by people we don't know."

"Well, you should've at least realized mom and dad would prioritize the ongoing repair of the Speeder."

Danny smiled slightly. "I kinda know that since mom didn't think to bring a cell phone in our last trip. It's not the place. It's the _heat_."

Jazz's mouth formed an "O". "Your ice core! I forgot."

"Hey, Jazz," she looked up only to find him smirking mischievously at her, "you know you just give me a _greaaat_ idea?"

"What?"

Danny changed into his ghost form. The temperature of the room suddenly decreased to a chill emanating from him. His eyes were not the usual green. Rather, they were icy blue, a shade of blue brighter than his human blue. One of his gloved hands formed a glowing fist with the same blue energy.

"I'm practically a walking AC, don't ya think?"

"Oh no! Wait, Danny! I know what you're think- _DON'T YOU DARE!"_ Jazz screeched as she got a fistful of snow to the face.

" _Danny!"_ The ghost boy was curling up in laughter. Jazz growled. _Two can play in this game, dear brother_.

She launched herself at Danny and tackled him. Taken by surprise, Danny could not maintain his floating and they both crashed to the ground next to the bed. Jazz started to tickle Danny.

"AAAAH! HAHAHAA! Jazz, _geroff!_ HAHAHAHA Oh God! You're so dead! Aaaah," Danny twitched and laughed uncontrollably, his arms being pinned to the sides by Jazz's legs.

Giving a wicked grin, Jazz stated triumphantly, "And the great Danny Phantom is defeated by Jasmine Fenton the Greater through the power of—omph!"

Her hand slipped on the suddenly covered-in-ice floor. Danny had frozen the area around which their bodies laid.

"Payback!" said the recently freed Danny. "By the power of tickling? Cos' that just sounds reaaal awesome, Jazz!" he grinned as he prepared another onslaught of snowballs. "Really awe-inspiring!"

"Hello everybody! The food's ready! And guess what? The hostel has just offered us a portable fan with some extra charge. I've told them to bring—" Maddie trailed off registering the sight that greeted her when she opened the wooden front door, almost making her drop the plastic bags she had in hands. "Umm, sweeties?" Jazz and Danny froze.

Jazz and Danny was in the midst of their mock-wrestling with soft pieces of snow still stuck in their clothing and hairs. Not to mention there was a fine layer of ice on the floor around them as well.

"Mom, I think I have a solution to our mutual heat problem," Danny said slowly, deliberately. One arm raised from his position on the floor (the other one was still under Jazz's leg).

"Oh no you don't!" Jazz said in horror, trying to grab the raised arm but it was too late. One look of concentration from Danny and a twitch of his fingers later, the room was practically covered with 6-inch of snow. Their baggage laid frozen in the corner of the room. The ceiling was dotted with a few of half-formed icy-version of stalactites completing the new design of the room that now looked more like an ice cave than a simple hostel room.

Danny smiled in satisfaction at his handiwork.

Maddie was gaping by the door, still unused by this blatant display of ghost powers even after these several months.

And Jazz, she was _glaring_ _hard_ at her brother. If only her glare could literally melt the snow in front of her.

It was at that _perfect_ moment the hostel staff came in behind Maddie, portable fan in hand. "Ma'am, here's your requested—wha—?" he ended so eloquently.

Maddie jumped at the sound coming from behind her. "Oh. Please do come in," her voice was uncharacteristically faint. The staff was too busy gaping to hear her.

The door to the bathroom opened. "Kids, the weather suddenly took a temperature dive while I was finishing the best part of Prince's song: the chorus! Whoaa, galloping ghostly goo!"

"Uhhh," Danny, being the object of everyone's stares (and one glare), rubbed his neck nervously. "I guess…winter is coming, huh?" he finished with his best Eddard Stark impression, which did not even manage to impress anyone.

Later on, the owner of the hostel herself would barge into the chaos after hearing several complaints from the rooms above _and_ under the Fentons' one – it turned out Danny had overpowered his ice creation so that it leaked into the upper and below floors. Then she promptly fainted after seeing Danny in his ghost form.

Furthermore, the inhabitants of the room above them were apparently a small family who had never been to a four-season country. The little girl's expression when seeing the snow for the first time melted the Fentons' hearts enough that they allowed her to play for a few hours with Jazz and Danny in their snow-covered room. Danny even made various ice sculptures for her.

However, the whereabouts of the Fentons could not remain secret anymore since that afternoon, and people swarmed the small hostel immediately, much to the delight of the owner. Their enthusiasm was certainly a lot bigger than the people in Amity since they wanted to meet the much-talked-about Danny Phantom in person.

Finally, Jack and Maddie decided to cancel the holiday after Maddie could not get into the local market without being mobbed. They were on the flight back to Amity the next day. Danny slightly regretted the outcome (he was having fun when the heat had turned into snow!). Jazz was grumbling all the way about missed opportunities to tan and walk on the beach, as well as of little brothers whose tendency was impersonating Jack Frost at the most inopportune moments. Danny took offense at that.

All in all it was certainly an eventful trip.

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 **Author's Note: As someone from a two-season country, "snow" is a bit of an unfamiliar concept to me. I remember how excited I was when I visited the States in February. Most of the photographs I took are me posing with the snow! How embarrassing! Lol. So that's the inspiration behind this story.**

 **And yikes, writing dialogues is a pain in the ass. I have to re-write several parts numerous times because I wanted to get the sound right for each character. Not sure if I succeed though. *frowns***

 **Anyways, your feedback is welcomed as always.**


	4. Day 21: Monster

**This is set during the episode "Double Cross My Heart", after Lancer introduced Gregor in the Nasty Burger and before Danny decided to spy on Sam though.**

 **Summary: Danny and Tucker have a heart-to-heart talk...sort of, and Danny blames his ghost half for the weird feeling he has when seeing Sam and Gregor/Elliot. Could it be that Danny harbors a monster in his chest?  
**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom, or Harry Potter for that matter.  
**

* * *

 **Day 21: Monster**

"Heya, Danny!" Tucker jumped into the empty seat near his despondent best mate. "Why such a long face?"

Danny chewed a bite of his half-eaten sandwich slowly before answering. "I dunno. _Idiots_ in White are in town again, the Box Ghost showed up for the _zenith_ times last night, I got detention for the rest of the week 'cause my alarm got hit by a stray shot and didn't wake me up, and Sam's just avoided us _again_ to sit with that new dude! I'm just peachy, Tuck!"

Tucker pulled out his precious new PDA – mind you, it just got fixed and upgraded from their latest encounter with Technus – and smirked at his best mate. "Dude, those kinds of stuff are _normal_ for you. Box Ghost, Guys in White, Lancer's detentions." He leaned forward teasingly, "Now Sam's new beau on the other hand…."

Danny glared. "Well I'll say he's bad news. I mean, he shows up every time the Guys in White comes, then tell me you don't buy 'I'm an ultra-recyclo vegetarian too' he used on Sam. It's a ploy, I tell you what," he hissed the last part gravely.

Tucker's response is only to grin at his friend. "Now now Danny," he said with a wiggle of his fingers. "Somebody _is_ je-a-lous", he said in a sing-song voice.

"….I'm NOT," Danny huffed.

"Sure you are," Tucker replied easily, eyeing Sam who got up to approach them.

"Shut up, Tuck. You still owe me one for that gerbil in sixth grade, you know? One more strike and I'll stick you with Kempler," Danny said with an evil grin.

"Spoilsport," Tucker muttered.

"Without your PDA as well—oh hi, Sam," Danny said as he saw Sam nearing their table. Unfortunately, Gregor, the new exchange student, was following her closely behind.

"And here comes the other half of the hopelessly clueless lovebirds," Tucker murmured quietly so that Gregor could not hear what he said. But Danny and Sam heard it clearly and tried to mask their flustered expressions. "Let's see if Casper High will remain standing after this upcoming confrontation, ladies and gents!" he added dramatically.

Danny, rather childishly, kicked one of Tucker's feet under the table, momentarily forgetting his strength as a half-ghost. Tucker's eyes watered in pain.

"Who exactly are you calling lovebirds, eh Tuck," Sam glowered. She glanced at Danny who usually responded to Tuck's "lovebird" comments with her; however, he was apparently locked in a staring match with Gregor.

"Anyways, I gotta tell you guys that we have to cancel today," Sam said brightly to alleviate the growing tension. "I can't come to Danny's after school. Uh….got stuff to do."

"Yes," Gregor added unexpectedly, "Sam is showing me a tour of Amity Park. Very cool, isn't it? You will understand, right?" The new boy stared appraisingly at Tucker and Danny, deciding that Tucker was definitely the friendlier of the duo.

"Sure, it's fine." Tucker elbowed Danny who was still stuck at his one-sided glaring match with Gregor.

Danny blinked, "….um, yeah."

"Great!" Sam said brightly as Gregor started to lead her away. Then she whispered quickly, "We're going to try out the new vegetarian place at the mall that I'm _sure_ you guys don't wanna come to, 'cause you know, it's extremely healthy and all, _and_ he agrees to shop in the Lurk and Skulk! You know it's almost like we're fated!" Then to Gregor's call she said, "Coming!"

"Whoa, I have never seen Sam that cheerful," Tucker said, astonished.

"Exactly," Danny suddenly said, still sporting a deep frown. "Whoever that is, that's not Sam."

"Relax, dude," Tucker said as he grabbed a handful of fries and shoved it into his mouth. "She's just..falling in _love_ ," he said with mouth still filled with fries.

"Ugh, Tuck…That's yuck," Danny made a face at the unsightly display.

"What? Sam falling in love? The fact that it wasn't _you_ she fell for?" asked Tucker, back in the teasing mood. "If you were not so hopelessly clueless –"

"—you know, that wasn't it I'm talking about," Danny said, making an exasperated gesture with his arms. "And I'm not clueless," Danny added petulantly. "Not sure why you guys keep calling me that."

"Yeah, dude, whatever makes you happy," said Tucker, reaching out to grab his Cola. "At least that guy's not a jerk."

"Not a jerk? Tuck," Danny bit his lip, trying to find words to articulate what he exactly felt, "Every time I look at the guy, my..uh…ghost half's acting up, alright?" He pointed at his midsection. "Like, right here. Almost feels like I'm about to feel my ghost sense, y'know, but it's just not…cold," he finished lamely.

Tucker blinked once. Then twice, still in the mid-motion of slurping the beverage.

Danny scowled, "Look, I'm trusting my instinct here. And they've never been wrong before! That. Guy. Is. Bad. News."

Then Tucker laughed. Danny patiently waited.

"Finished?"

"Oh man oh man _oh man_ ," Tucker wiped an imaginary tear. "Alright, loverboy. I hear ya. You do admit you've got _a monster in your chest_!"

"…Tucker, you're officially reaching a new level of weird."

"No, _no!_ " Tucker exclaimed enthusiastically. "Haven't you even read _Harry Potter?_ There's this part when Harry caught Ginny and her boyfriend Dean kissing, and guess what? He got this…," he whispered conspiratorially, " _monster in his chest_ , that finally let him know that he's in love with Ginny!"

Danny had a blank look in his face. "As long as it's not related to astronomy, you know I hardly touch any book. That's great, Tuck. Really great. As in, I don't know whether to be worried or not that your mind could make such a great and totally random jump."

Tucker sighed. "Alright, I give up! But you get the point, right? You, Danny Fenton, have realized your feeling for our dear Sam Manson!"

"….You're crazy. I don't know why I'm still listening to you," Danny shook his head as he finished his sandwich. "And I'm _not_ jealous of Sam."

"Denial is still a river in Egypt, I see."

Danny at this point had all but ignored him, going to the direction of the almost-deserted corridor.

"Fun fact, dude," he said to Danny's retreating figure. "Sam totally has _you_ as her type. I mean, Gregor's hair is white! Bleached white, I know. Wonder who else has snow white hair, hmm?"

Tucker yelped as his red beret suddenly disappeared.

"Hey, give it back! Danny!"

* * *

 **Author's Note: Monster=jealousy, get it? Hehe. I was a bit stuck trying to come up with an idea for this fic but then I remember that part in _Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince_. So, I wrote this based on my memory of "Double Cross My Heart"….which isn't much. So please forgive me for the lack of details and unintentional divergence from canon.  
**

 **On another note, thank you for the favs and follows! I'm _really_ trying not to depend my writing on reviews, but you gotta admit they help a lot, 'specially for beginner writers like me! So please *gives puppy dog eyes***


	5. Day 22: Star

**Summary : Coming back to Amity Park after college, Star is in the process of acquainting herself with the town's particular quirk when she finds herself making peace with a former classmate. Set six years after PP.**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Danny Phantom.**

 **Here is the head canon I used for this story:**

 **1\. Phantom Planet happened when Danny and co. were sixteen to seventeen. I'd like to think that three seasons in the show equals three years of Danny's progress after he got his powers. This is because I feel that if the stuffs that happened to him are condensed into just a few month to a year, there's just _too_ much. It's a bit unrealistic to expect a 14 y.o. boy to go from being electrocuted, taking up the mantle as the town's protector, learning fighting along the way, being public enemy no.1, then slowly being reputed as the hero gradually after Reign Storm, facing Vlad as mayor, facing major ghosts like Undergrowth and Nocturne, then decided to lose his power in Phantom Planet _before_ (after a period of time passed) getting them back in time of the Disasteroid.**

 **And those were only the major ones. I haven't mentioned keeping up with schools, hiding his ghostly alter-ego from his ghost-hunting parents, and (as the theme song put it eloquently) _stop all the ghosts from coming through_ (the portals, be it Fenton-made, Masters-made, or the natural ones).**

 **Danny is younger than my current age. Even if he started the show with my age, then proceeded to do all those things in a year, he would go insane.**

 **Furthermore, fighting skills cannot be acquired instantaneously. There has to be a built-up. Three years of practice putting the ghosts down, day by day, should do it for Danny. The show only shows the major, status-quo-changing events...I think.**

 **2\. I made Kwan as a future researcher in Axion. In TUE, Kwan was shown to be one. Source: DP Wiki**

 **3\. I took David Kaufman's guesstimate (Minnesota) in deciding where Amity Park is located. It's not in the East Coast (Star went there for university).**

 **Without further ado, folks!**

* * *

 **Day 22 : Star**

"Alright! Alright! I told you. Time and time again. I'll pick 'em up at two, honey," exclaimed a blond-haired woman to the cell phone wedged between her head and shoulder, as she dove into the crowd of shop-goers, expression a bit harassed as she tried to maneuver her grocery cart. "Right after I finished doing my _own_ things, Kwan."

A pause.

"What do you _mean_ there's been a change of schedule!?"

Another pause.

"And you're telling me this now?"

The woman managed to reach the section of the supermarket which was less crowded by now.

"I know they get mad when it's late, but hey! No fair," she pouted. "You're the one who's into this part-time job!"

She grabbed two bottles of apple juice from the shelves on her right side.

"I have scheduled my clinic appointment before my voucher runs out. Today's the last day," she sighed. "I can't _possibly_ make it at twelve! You have to be the one doing it."

She then grabbed a box of Lucky Charms, turned it over and examined the expiration date, then put it inside her cart.

"Kwan, I _swear_. If you're not my boyfriend, I'm so gonna ruin your life. Nope! No compromise from me! You're the one starting it, and you're the one doing it then."

Star closed her phone with a flourish. "No way I'm giving up my facial appointment today just from some _stupid_ pick-up jobs," she muttered angrily. The 23-year-old woman was your typical college graduate. Star and Kwan had decided to live together in a rented flat back to Amity Park after they resumed their relationship post-college. Star was pursuing her tertiary education in one of the universities located in the East Coast, but her occasionally on-and-off boyfriend had managed to snatch a scholarship to Arizona State through his parents' connection with Axion Labs. The 4-year period of being separated had cemented their desire to move back to their hometown, trying to build a life (and a relationship) together. Now both were fresh out of college, and scrambling to find jobs amid the burden of tuition debt (for Star) and unpaid internship at Axion (for Kwan). It was the reason why Kwan picked up some stray small jobs here and there. Star only reluctantly tagged along. Today it was picking up somebody's kid from an elementary.

The two former A-listers found out the hard way that the leeway they were given in high school did not extend beyond it. Star herself was still sending applications after applications to Channel 9's doorstep, then Channel 6, and finally (when she became desperate enough) the Ghost Watch Channel – going as far as applying as the dreaded position of field reporter. She was trying to put her Communication degree into a good use. Kwan, on the other hand, was Axion's new R&D intern. It was surprising indeed, given his history as a jock in high school. However, Kwan found his identity, aside from being one of Dash' lackeys, during the after hours spent inside the school's science lab. Star was at the time the only one _in_ his little secret; and while she did not hold any fondness for science-related things, she couldn't begrudge his newfound interest. It was a bit of a surprise for her when he decided to pursue it to college.

One thing that Star had not let go from her high school years was her beauty routine. She had, after all, gotten to the top of the high school food chain with her looks. Her parents' financial background was as average as the American middle class family. Now if she wanted _that_ job in a respectable TV station, she had to maintain her poise – and Kwan, boyfriend or no boyfriend, should understand that. Hadn't he fallen for her due to her looks before?

Yet, here he was, demanding her to help him. _As if_ , Star thought. _He wouldn't have needed a freaking help if he'd just quit his useless, no money, job._

Star was just about to start heading to the cashier, cart full of the month's groceries, when a crash sounded from outside the supermarket. It was from the direction of the parking lot. A sudden silence befell the room, as the background music people took for granted in supermarkets was turned off. And then…

"ATTENTION LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. WE WILL SOON EXECUTE THE GHOST EVACUATION PROCEDURE. PLEASE REMAIN IN YOUR POSITION WHILE OUR GHOST SHIELD IS ACTIVATED. YOU ARE ADVISED TO FIND A STURDY COVER IN CASE OF FALLING DEBRIS. REMAIN CALM AND HAVE A GOOD DAY SHOPPING AT OUR STORES!" The sirens blared two more times with a somewhat inappropriately cheery-sounding male voice-over before the room became silent once more.

"Mommy, is Danny Phantom out there?" a child's voice became the first sound to be heard. Then, the room erupted into whispers and low murmurs while the mother tried to hold back her small son from eagerly rushing to the double glass doors, the only view to the outside world in the otherwise windowless supermarket.

Star quickly parked her cart to a corner before moving to an area with a less amount of tall shelves, joining a crowd of about 20 people. This was routine in Amity Park (the welcome sign read "Your Ghost Experience Starts Here!" when she passed the city border) – and Star admittedly missed this sensation after the years spent across the continent.

Another noise which suspiciously sounded like a mini-missile being fired was heard.

"They should'a let us out to watch the action," grumbled a tall teenager with spiky blonde hair.

"Aw, piss off Rick. The evening news prolly will tell us what happened."

"What ghost do you think today?

"I was _there_ , I'll have you know, when he fought that T-Rex ghost. Downtown. About a month ago. Good thing my phone battery's still on to record the whole thing. It was—"

"—A _dinosaur_ ghost?! How could I miss _that?_ " moaned a boy.

"Ghost shield's in place. Think that'll protect us enough?"

"It's government-insured! I heard the U.S. government is planning to add one to the White House."

"Insured! Flippin' government won't even insure my damaged car!" a man dressed in a suit groaned. "And it was the company's car!"

"You know what they say 'bout collateral damage, Mike. At least it's not your body," his female companion tried to comfort him. "Or your personal car," she added as an afterthought.

"Hey, y'all think the ghost kid can be sued for damages?"

"Yeah right, bud. Just sue the guy who has _no hand_ whatsoever in causing the damage. It's not like he protects Amity every day, right?"

"I'm not so sure about the no hand part. The ghosts….are here to attack him?"

"You're kidding me, right? This is Amity. Ghosts attack Amity. Phantom or no Phantom," a young woman in a green sweater exclaimed. "Remember when Daniel was gone being a speaker in that Brussels Summit two years ago? My dad's a cop, alright? He didn't even come home for a week!"

"Daniel? You're on a first-name basis with him?"

"Well, of course not, silly! That's his name, yes? Nothing's wrong with that," the woman chuckled nervously when finding herself to be the center of the group's attention.

"I think he prefers Danny," blurted out Star before her brain caught up with her mouth. "I heard him correcting our teacher, Mr. Lancer, when he continuously called him Daniel. I think he's only called that when in trouble." It was an A-lister's instinct. Be visible. Grab any opportunity to take the stage whenever possible. And she did; it was the only opportunity she could get after being left out of Amity's information vines for so long. It was a shameless grab, offering up her knowledge of her former classmate's _sort-of_ personal information like that, a ploy to make her get the upper ground against the conversing citizens. They latched to her bait hook and sinker.

 _It's funny_ , Star thought. _Years after Danny Phantom became Danny Fenton, people are still after even the tiniest bits of details of his life._ It was perhaps something to do with her former classmate's considerable shyness – at least that was what he seemed to be in her knowledge of him, which was not much. She was not sure anymore.

"Wait a minute! Teacher? You're from Casper High?" a girl, eyes-wide with surprise, asked her.

"I _was_ in Casper High. _His_ year actually," Star said a bit smugly. "Danny's friend Tucker was my fling actually. You _do_ know Tucker Foley, do you?"

The dinosaur-obsessed boy (although she doubted that it was his only obsession) spoke out, "Know him? Hello. Ex-interim mayor, head of Axion R&D, and overall technological genius? Not to mention he's best friend with Phantom!"

Star stiffened. Tucker Foley, Casper High's number two loser (the A-listers' number one was Danny, but of course that was before _the_ revelation) and overall geek was currently her boyfriend's _boss_? What on earth…

"Ah….well, he's one of my friends too," Star smiled feebly. "…now, I mean, after we broke up. And Phan-Danny as well!"

"Really!?" one of the girls actually squealed. "So miss..?" a girl came up and shyly shuffled her feet. "Do you perhaps have his phone number? _Danny_ 's phone number, I mean?" Eager nods from the rest of the girls.

"Screw his phone number! I want to know if he wanna recruit sidekicks." Now a teenage boy countered the girls, rolling his eyes at them. "Ask him if he wants to open a school for that! Hey, that's an idea! I can help—I'm already red-belt in Taekwondo."

"What a great idea is to corner that Fenton kid and hold him accountable for the damage he's done!"

"Geez, uh..Mike, is it? I'd _really_ like to see you getting thrown around into buildings and _still_ thinking about damages…" Star countered the irate businessman. Then she turned brightly to the crowd, "Hold up those phone number requests, guys! Now my name's Star, and if you want to get to _my friend, Danny_ —"

Before Star could take finish her sentence, the alarm blared once more. Belatedly, she realized that the sounds of fighting outside could not be heard anymore.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE GHOST EVACUATION PROCEDURE HAS ELAPSED. GHOST THREAT HAS BEEN NEGATED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION." The speaker then played a country song she _swore_ she heard this morning in the radio.

A distinction could be seen in the way the people went back to their respective businesses. The locals resumed their usual activities without as much as a blink, while the newer residents and visitors were much more interested in dawdling around, speculating among themselves about what just happened – and for the most interested ones, they promptly left the grocery carts behind and walked to the front doors.

Star sighed, a bit disappointed because of missing the opportunity to make herself known. After all, Amity Park's media scene was rather famous for hunting all things Phantom – since the guy himself was rather (okay, _very_ ) elusive, and she had hoped to score herself a connection to the channels. She walked to the corner where her cart was parked. Star looked at her watch. It was only 30 minutes before noon. Her mind wandered to the clinic she was going next. Suddenly feeling energized, she swiftly walked toward the cashier. There was already a line, but thankfully it was not too long. Star joined the end of the line behind a person in a gray hoodie.

Tapping her foot impatiently on the tiled floor, she observed her surrounding to pass the time. There were several lines; one for each of the station in the cashier. An old lady in a wheelchair was remarkably hefting two bags of groceries all by herself two lines beside hers. She surprisingly spotted the man in suit; his name's Mike or something else, talking obnoxiously to his phone; occasionally letting out a laugh, his previous grumpiness was non-existent. A girl with a ponytail was in the process of grabbing a magazine in the stand near a cashier station. Her gait unexpectedly reminded her of the times when she was just a high schooler, whose concern only involved catching up the latest fashion trend in the magazine. A guy behind her was nodding along to whatever song he had on his MP3 player. She could spot the telltale earphone cables on the person in front of her too. In fact, now that her eyes fell upon that person, who was fiddling with a knot in the cables (a hard thing to do considering his one hand was holding a shopping basket), a feeling of familiarity crept up on her psyche.

 _No way. No freakin' way,_ Star thought with increasing fascination. Strands of raven hair jutting out from his hooded head, a lean body which she _knew_ used to be lanky in high school, trademark blue jeans faded due to constant use, and red sneakers which were the same style as his were _nine years ago_ , albeit in a bigger size. She only needed him to turn around to confirm what she had already known.

Then as if Heaven itself heard her unspoken wish, Danny Fenton accidentally dropped his MP3 player instead of successfully getting a particularly tight knot loose. The device slid to rest behind his legs, closer to Star's current position.

"Ow, crud," he mumbled under his breath.

 _Still clumsy, I see_ , Star absently observed while watching the person in front of her turn around, bent down to pick his player, straightened up, and _froze_. His blue eyes were fixed on the blonde in front of him.

"S-star? Didn't expect to see you here!"

Getting her bearings together, Star managed to reply, "Uh… hi, Danny! You're..um…shopping here?" _Wait, why did he greet me first?_

"Yeah!" Danny replied, safely pocketing his MP3 player. "The usual drill, y'know? My mom's too busy to take the job. Dad's going crazy without a fudge! Eh, I haven't seen you these last couple of years, have I?"

"Well, I was in Oregon pursuing a bachelor," she said with a smile. Funny how years outside the high school cliques could make them talk together like a friend. "What about you? Oh wait, don't answer that!" she slapped a hand to her forehead. "I only saw you on TV like two nights ago!"

"Ssssh!" Danny suddenly said, looking around. "You wanna get mobbed? That's how you get mobbed," he said, a bit crossly.

"Oh yeah sorry!" Star almost giggled at the surrealism of their situation. "So how's the ghost before? I was here when the alarm sounded," she remarked with a casual air of someone discussing the weather. _Ah, how I miss Amity Park_.

"Uhh, yeah I know. It's only Skulker. You think he'd just give up after all these years but nope, not Skulker." He used one hand to indicate the quote-unquote sign, "the greatest hunter in the Zone. Yeah right," he scoffed. "At least, he won't show up 'till maybe the next three days after _that_ beating. Ten minutes! Just wait until Tucker heard."

Although she did not know who or what a Skulker was, Star couldn't help but smile seeing the rather proud expression on Danny's face. "Ten minutes? It really felt longer than that. Are you sure?" she teased.

"Yep," he replied, popping the "P". Then he looked at her rather peculiarly, "You know what? You're an…alright person I guess? Why weren't we friends again in high school?"

"You're saying I'm not 'alright' before?" Star stated defensively with a quiet anger. "Look, I'm not the one spending their time pretending to be _someone I'm not._ You can't bitch on me, Fenton, for thinking you as a loser." Okay, how did their lighthearted atmosphere change into this?

Immediately, Danny looked crestfallen. Star's feeling suddenly backtracked. _Why do I feel so wrong here?_ "Sorry I….," He let out a puff of breath, blowing his hair out of his face. "…can we just forget that? I have a habit of putting my foot in my mouth," he said, his hands trying to make a placating gesture. "I'm still loser Fenton, you know," he added self-disparagingly, surprising her. "…seems everyone just forget about it, _then_ I make a comment or action out of place, then they'll all 'no you're not perfect Phantom'. And then them not talking to me as a person anymore," he half-mumbled, seemingly talking to himself rather than to her. "Just like high school, right?" he stared back at her with a wry smile.

It was then Star noticed a painful-looking bruise on the right side of his temple, previously covered by his hair. Her anger suddenly melted as shame filled her. "No it's…" she swallowed, "…there's nothing for you to be sorry for, Danny. That looks painful by the way." she intoned, pointing at the bruise. "Ten minutes but the ghost got you bad?"

"Nah, don't worry. I'm a fast healer," he said, face brightened with the change in conversation. "It's only a matter of routine. You should see the other guy, though," The confident smirk usually seen in his alter-ego was back again. "…although, the asphalt needs to be re-layered. Again," he said with a frown. "At least we didn't hit any car this time though."

"That's funny. Some guy earlier said about his car getting damaged. You should be careful of any future lawsuit."

"Oh, that guy?" he quirked a smile at her. There was a quality to that smile she could not decipher. They moved two steps ahead as their line was getting shorter. "He obviously hadn't heard of the new provision in state insurance laws. Or else he should know that he could make a legitimate claim due to ghost-related damage. But then, it _was_ a company car. That would exclude him from the provision."

"You've met him before then. I shouldn't be surprised. He was a rather obnoxious person. Should be easy to remember."

"Yeah, I've met Mike about twenty minutes ago in fact," Danny grinned at the downing realization in Star's face. "I _still_ think about damages though, when I get thrown into buildings. Old habits die hard after a year being public enemy number one," he chuckled. "Thanks anyway for the defense."

It was like solving a puzzle. The fact that he knew she was in the store when he turned around, his willingness to be incredibly open with someone who by all pretenses hated his social standing, his little references to the collateral damage discussion….Danny was _there_ in her little group during the evacuation period. He had said he was done fighting in ten minutes give or take, while the period had lasted much longer than the ten-minute mark.

"How long were you there?" she asked faintly. _Omygoshohmygosh, he must have heard what she was saying then._ Her face reddened.

Their line moved forward again. Danny's turn would soon come. "Around the time a _certain_ someone decides to correct my name's pronunciation actually," he said with a grin. "You're right, Daniel sounds a bit too posh for myself. Only Vlad keeps calling me that," he added with a scowl.

Star breathed in relief when she saw that his expression held no sign of annoyance, or worse, contempt. "Yeah, sorry 'bout that," she mumbled. Then she suddenly felt an overwhelming need to explain her action. "I was actually thinking doing _that_ would help me in the media business. I'm looking for a job, really. I didn't mean to use your name like that, sorry," she honestly apologized. "Look, Danny. You have a point about me being…um…a _not-alright_ person before. Now that I think about it, we're incredibly silly in high school, right? I just wish… it didn't take me long years in college to see that." Seeing Danny's understanding expression, she continued, "Who knows? Maybe Kwan and I could be friends with you, Sam, and Tucker."

"Hey, I don't mind, Star. See? No hard feelings at all!" he gave her a beaming smile. "'sides, you and Kwan, huh? How's he doing by the way?" At this point, Danny's turn at the cashier had come. He deftly lifted the grocery basket and prepared his wallet, all the while avoiding eye contact with the bored-looking woman serving as the cashier.

Star blushed, "We actually moved together last month. Kwan's an intern in Axion Lab. Oh! I get an idea! We should hang out together sometime…catch up with old times. With Samantha as well if you prefer," she said sheepishly.

Unexpectedly for her, Danny agreed. "Yeah, I'll ask Sam about that. You should call her Sam though. Friend or no friend, she's going to rain hell to anyone who calls her Samantha," he shuddered. "Except for her mother."

They were silent when Danny proceeded to pay his groceries.

Just before Danny left to gather his bags, he turned to Star as she loaded her groceries from the cart to the table. "Hey," he started hesitantly. "I know I don't usually ask this but…" he trailed off. "…my sister's been badgering me about getting a…publicist," He chewed out the word as if it was something disgusting. "I don't really trust those media people. You really mean it when you say we're friends now, right?" Star was just about to give him an immediate affirmation when his hopeful expression turned hesitant once more. "Listen, I kind of trust you right now. And you're planning to work with the media. Perhaps, you could…I dunno…find someone you trust for me?"

Her eyes boggled as a great idea came into her mind. "Hey, Fenton," she said with a light-hearted tone. "You think my performance back then isn't good enough as _your_ publicist?" she grinned.

Danny smirked. "Why, Star, _maybe_ if you managed to get your number out in the end…or just _tone down_ a bit on the self-promotion side what with you claiming a fling with Tucker, then yeah."

She mock scowled. "Right, ghost boy…I'll make sure next time everyone in town calls you Daniel."

"Ghost boy? Ugh, you'll have to work on that next. I'm freakin' 23 year-old," Danny exclaimed. Star had to laugh out loud at that. "And don't you even _dare_. Anyways, I'll contact you once everything's done. See ya, Star!"

Star turned back to her groceries only to find the cashier smiling knowingly at her. "That's Danny Fenton, right?"

"Uh…you see…"

"It's alright. You guys should have been more discreet having this kind of conversation though."

Star only smiled sheepishly as she handed her payment. As she walked to the parking lot _–_ Danny was right; there was a medium-sized carter in the asphalt but no car was touched – she suddenly came to an epiphany. Before, she could only see a carter that symbolized the aftermath of another Phantom vs. the ghost of the week fight, even after the Disasteroid incident which revealed Phantom as her classmate. There was a strange feeling now seeing the debris from the fight after being friends with Danny. She was used to have Kwan as the only person to accept her outside of physical attraction. Even then she still felt insecure around him. Having Danny willing to give her a chance despite her obvious flaw – demonstrated clearly in front of him – was a surprise. Star was worth something outside of her former A-lister poise. Plus she got a new job!

She knew what to do. Star picked up her phone and called Kwan. When she realized she was wrong on a lot of things, this was one of them. No-paying jobs did not always mean useless jobs. Kwan did it for his future _–_ _their_ future, dare she said it. After all, no one could say Danny Phantom was paid to do his job. Yet, there were people who still wanted to sue him.

"Hey honey, I'm on my way to the elementary now. Yeah…something came up. I'll tell you what tonight. And you know what," she giggled. "…to heck with my voucher."

"You just go on with your job. It's important to you, it's important to me too!"

* * *

 **Author's Note: *sigh* Writing this is...exhausting. Fear not, dear readers. I really plan to follow through my commitment in finishing the 31 prompts challenge. I apologize for not updating the previous days (I think I counted 5 lost days!). As a result, I'm really behind the schedule now. I'm in finale weeks though so I just ran out of time and energy to write!  
**

 **I intended for Star and Danny's interactions to have _meaning_ s, not just a simple mindless convo. I was having difficulties in reconciling the loose ends to a neat wrap up at the end though. So I apologize if you find it confusing. :')**

 **And yes, I have gravely misinterpreted the word "drabbles". It's all started with a plan to improve my dialogue writing, then it turns into...this.**

 **I really appreciate the kind reviews from Lexosaurus as well as those of you out there who have favorited and followed these drabbles. Sincerely, it means a lot for me as a new author. You should check out Lexosaurus's works by the way. I myself very much like "Repressed Emotions" for the considerable amount of Danny!angst.**

 **Adios 'till my next update then (which hopefully I'll post tomorrow)!**

 **P.S. Reviews are a soothing balm to the writer's soul.**


	6. Day 23: Dragons

**Disclaimer: How could I have owned Danny Phantom when I was just a child when it came on TV? I do not own the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim as well...**

 **This is a bit of a crossover between DP and the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. You don't need to have a full knowledge of the game story line to understand this though. I have stuck to Danny's POV mostly so if you don't know anything about Skyrim, you're just like Danny :)**

 **Summary: Danny was stuck in a video game with dragons after a fight with a new ghost. Hello Danny Phantom, meet Skyrim.**

* * *

 **Day 23: Dragons**

[ _Italic_ for emphasis and Danny's thoughts]

.

BAM! Danny found himself lying face-down on the hard, unforgiving ground. There was a sized indentation on the ground which was unsurprising considering that his downward trajectory was in a speed of more than 120 mph. But Danny could not care less about the ground, really. There was a still floating, still gloating ghost above him whose hand was glowing a deep red color.

How did it come to this?

Danny, Sam and Tucker were just on their way to Tucker's house after school to check out Tucker's newly-bought video game. As usual in Amity Park, the town was never left ghost-free for long. Soon enough, Danny's ghost sense went off. Unfortunately, Danny had forgotten to empty out the Fenton Thermos last night. As the consequence, the Thermos was filled with the ghosts they caught last night, _as well as_ the ghosts they caught throughout the school period. The accumulation of ghosts rendered the poor Thermos to its full capacity.

Therefore, Danny volunteered to keep the ghost busy while Sam and Tucker ran down to Fentonworks in order to empty out the Thermos. Usually, he would have hold the ghost down by now while waiting for his friends to arrive. However, Danny was not at his best due to a severe lack of sleep – his nap at the school desk unsurprisingly did not help. The ghost had taken him by surprise.

Thus this predicament came into being.

Danny shook himself awake from the cobwebs that were beginning to form in his head. "Note to self, next time I'm being thrown around, don't plunge into the ground head-first _,_ " he muttered to himself. He must have hit his head harder than he thought. A blast of red light was coming toward him. By the skin of his teeth, Danny managed to dodge at the blast by rolling his body to the right.

"Behold! My powers know no boundaries! I shall make you beholden to my might! You and soon the rest of the world!" The ghost let out an evil laugh.

Danny _had_ to refrain from rolling his eyes. Powerful as it might be, it seemed to suffer from the same disease most ghosts he fought had. "Dear god, did Technus just get himself an apprentice? That is an even _lamer_ 'I will take over the world' speech, dude, than the Box Ghost!"

The ghost became enraged, even more so than before. "YOU. DARE. TO. CALL. ME. LAME?! I, DESTRUCTO, THE GHOST OF DESTRUCTION, WILL MAKE YOU WISH YOU HADN'T BEEN BORN BOY! I WILL—"

"Yeah yeah!" Danny interrupted, charging up a powerful ectoblast with both hands. "…end my already half-dead life? Hang my pelt above your bed? Oh wait, that's Skulker! You guys really need to be more original!" He shot at the ghost.

Unfortunately, the ghost was incredibly agile. Destructo was able to float backward and returned fire almost immediately in one quick motion. Danny did _not_ expect that. He took the red blast fully to the chest, and closed his eyes waiting for the pain to come.

It didn't.

Instead when Danny opened his eyes he was in a completely different surrounding. _What in the world?_ He was apparently sitting in a cart. _I could swear I was standing before._ The air was definitely several degrees colder than what he was used to. _Not that it affects me or anything, but still…cold._ The ghost was nowhere to be seen. _What else can I expect?_ A blond guy in front of him was apparently trying to get his attention.

"Hey, you! Yes you! You with the unruly hair!"

Danny stopped short. "Unruly?" he said incredulously, seeing the state of the blond man's hair. His eyes drifted upward. Black. His hair was black. "Like you should talk. Did you run out of shampoo….uuh, dude in the—Holy freakin' mules! Is that _chain mail_?" Now that Danny was able to think more clearly, he was able to see that his companions were dressed like they were in a medieval play. It was very authentic, too. It reminded him of the time he was dressed up as a knight in Dora's realm.

"Syam—pooh?" The blonde frowned, a confused expression in his face. "Listen kid, the only thing we ran out here is our darned luck! And battle axes! Curse those darned imperial dogs," he said angrily.

Danny could only gape at him, trying to once again, figure out what _sort_ of predicament he had found himself in. Ever since he became half-ghost, this kind of things was getting more and more frequent.

"You were trying to cross the border, eh kid? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief over there," the man's eyes flickered toward the smaller man next to him.

"Damn you Stormcloaks!" The thief, apparently, exclaimed. "Skyrim was fine until you came along. Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn't been looking for you, I could've stolen that horse and been half way to Hammerfell."

The thief turned to Danny, addressing him, "You there. You and me – more you actually – how old are you anyway, kid? We shouldn't be here. It's these Stormcloaks the Empire wants."

 _Wait a minute… Skyrim. Now where did I hear of that before? Skyrim. Skyrim. Hmm._ Danny's eyes became very wide. "Tucker's new video game!" he exclaimed suddenly, drawing odd looks from those around him – even from the gagged man who sat next to Danny. "Ow crud ow crud ow crud ow crud…," Danny groaned, feeling the urge to bang his head to a hard surface.

"Kid, are you fine?"

"….uuuuh, why me why me why me?"

Ralof watched the kid worriedly. When he was the first person to wake up after the ambush, he was at first surprised seeing the person next to his leader Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak. The person obviously had not reached adulthood yet. Ralof had never seen this kid before, not even during his travelling days among the major cities of Skyrim and Cyrodill. He would have remembered the kid, for his appearance was very strange. Light blue eyes in a different shade than the typical blue eyes of the Nords peeked out from a mop of raven hair styled in a way Ralof had never seen before. His whole appearance was marginally cleaner – with the exception of several bumps and scrapes around his face and neck – than the usual citizen, even when he was wearing a ragged prisoner robe.

"Is he having a breakdown?" The thief nudged Ralof, staring at the kid in astonishment.

Ralof took pity at the kid. "Calm down, boy. We're all brothers and sisters now," he said, glaring at the thief for his earlier statement.

"Shut up back there!" the Imperial soldier piloting their wooden cart shouted.

"Right! Blame me for having a psychological crisis after finding out _me_ living out a video game, you typical Roman soldier," Danny snapped at the soldier. "I do want to play that game, but not like this!" he threw his bound hands up in the air.

Danny looked at his companions in binds only to find they were all staring wordlessly at him.

"I see you're eager to meet your death, prisoner!" he snapped his head back at the soldier at the front, who was now looking very incensed. "I will ensure you be the first beheaded!"

Unfortunately for the soldier, Danny – who was used to receive threats of beheading, body parts dismemberment, and ectoenergy-induced incineration _daily_ – just gave him a flat look.

"…And, what's wrong with him?" the thief suddenly broke the silence between them, nodding to the gagged man on Danny's right.

Danny tuned off the conversation, choosing instead to find out whether he still had his powers or not. He concentrated to find the cold core deep within his beating human heart – it was there! He was confident he could go ghost now if it was triggered. _At least that's a relief_ , he thought happily, _usually ghosts aren't that considerate giving me my powers after whisking me off somewhere._

He could just charge a spark of energy in his hands to burn the rope binding it, then he would promptly whack the soldier on the head, escape, and find Destructo in this video game realm.

"…the leader of the rebellion," Danny heard the thief squeaked. "But if they captured you… Oh gods, where are they taking us? Shor, Mara, Dibella, Kynareth, Akatosh. Divines, please help me."

"Look at him," the blonde's rough voice interrupted the frantic rambling. "General Tullius the Military Governor. And it looks like the Thalmor are with him. Damn elves. I bet they had something to do with this—"

"—wait, what have they done?" Danny's curiosity hindered him from enacting his impromptu escape plan. "Elves are cool," he said, remembering the book assignment on _Lord of the Rings_ Lancer gave a few months ago. He ended up liking what he read. "Oh wait," Danny said, after taking a _really_ good look at the elves near the man dressed in the most elaborate Roman garb Danny had ever seen. _General Tullius I suppose._ "I have to agree with you. Those elves are definitely in the 'ew' category."

Yellow skin, slanted eyes, and scowling expressions – yep, they were definitely not Legolas.

The blonde chuckled with mirth. "Now that is what I like to see from Skyrim's youths. We may die today, but if the children of Skyrim have the same spirit as you, kid, our cause will hold true!" His expression turned suspicious, "—but you do not know of what they have done? _They_? The Thalmor? I hope that's a rhetorical question, kid."

Danny shrugged. "Well…I really don't. No offense," he said sheepishly. "I'm…new here. So why are we criminals again?" _I know Tucker mentioned something about the game being a continuation of another game._

"They're the Stormcloaks!" the thief blurted out. "Traitors of the Empire! The High King of Skyrim was just fine allowing Talos-worship in secret, but no! Stormcloak here murdered him!" Danny realized that the person gagged next to him was the aforementioned Stormcloak. "And now war's coming to Skyrim. We have enough of that in the Great War—"

"—the Great War was the reason we fight!" the blonde, _a Stormcloak supporter_ , Danny realized, countered harshly. "The Empire is too much of a coward, licking the boots of those elves! And again, watch your dirty mouth, thief! Jarl Ulfric _challenged_ Toryyg in an honor duel!"

"Honor!" The thief cried out. "By Dibella! You are too blinded—"

"QUIET!" suddenly a stern voice sounded. It was not the soldier from before. No, it was General Tullius himself, who was standing before them, one hand over his sword. Danny realized the cart had stopped and the elves, Roman soldiers, and other prisoners were watching them with interest.

"As interesting as this conversation is, prisoners," the General started wryly, "your time's already up. Carry on, soldier!"

They were ordered to get off the cart and made a line while their names were listed. Danny, realizing that he could escape anytime now, was silently thinking that _really_ , _is this the game that Tucker's so hyped up about? There's no action so far! And I'm about to be beheaded._ The thief whispered to him on the way down. Danny could smell the distinct smell of alcohol on the thief. "You and I should not be in this, kid. We'll be escaping – on my mark."

The names of the prisoners were read one by one. Danny learned that the blonde who was speaking to him earlier was Ralof of Riverwood. The man with the gag next to him was none other than Ulfric Stormcloak himself, although why he was gagged Danny did not get the reason previously. There were only two left: him and the thief.

"Lokir of Rorikstead?" the man holding a list called.

The thief, _Lokir_ , trembled. He walked forward hesitantly, and then panic seemed to overtake his being.

"Look! Me and the kid over there – we're innocents! I'm just a simple thief, please!" he pleaded pitifully. "The kid doesn't even know _anything!_ You heard us in the cart! We're loyal to your Empire!"

The man with the list seemed to take pity on Lokir. "What should we do, Captain?" he addressed the woman solider next to him, "They're not on the known rebel lists. Lokir of Rorikstead was only added from the 100 septims bounty in Eastmarch."

"Forget the list. They go to the block."

Lokir's face crumpled. "You can't do this! You're not going to kill me!"

Then all hell seemed to break loose. Lokir started to run. Danny felt like he was watching it all in a slow motion.

"Archers!" shouted the woman captain.

Danny acted instinctively. Instinct born during his years as Danny Phantom kicked in. A single thought triggered his transformation. Ragged prisoner robes and bound hands were replaced with a black and white jumpsuit, a "D" symbol on his chest, hands surprisingly unbound and gloved – looking very much out of place in the medieval setting. Raven hair was changed into snow white, and his sky blue eyes became green glowing with supernatural energy.

The arrows were simply no match to the 112 mph speed as Danny launched himself to Lokir's retreating back. The incoming arrows were laughably slow compared to bullets and ecto-energy discharges. Danny wasted no time covering Lokir's body with his, as his other hand formed a shield against the projectiles. Then, everything was silent.

"Talos almighty," someone whispered. There was a weird sound as Ulfric, whose mouth was gagged, looked wide-eyed at General Tullius who had his hands covering his mouth.

Danny lowered his shield down, not meeting anyone's eyes. Lokir started to move under him. "By divines, I'm alive!" Then he looked at Danny, "—what—"

"—WHAT ARE YOU?" Suddenly one of the elves shouted. _Uh oh, here they come_ , thought Danny. "By the authority of the Thalmor, I hereby order this… _entity_ to be exterminated!" she said as her hands started to produce sparks of electricity. Danny could not help but be reminded of Vlad. "Attack!"

"WHOA WHOA!" Danny shouted, raising his hands in a placating gesture. He floated closer to them, making the few brave soldiers who had drawn their swords to raise their swords higher.

"Your _Thalmor_ —"Danny spat, dodging a few blasts of purple electricity from the elf, "—is such an idiot—" He slammed a hand to the cobbled ground, freezing the feet of the soldiers who were coming toward him via the ground, "—you really are shoot first ask later kind of people, are you!?" Danny flew higher, making several acrobatic loops to avoid blasts from all three elves on the ground. The prisoners, including Lokir, were staring at the unusual battle before them.

Danny erected a shield for the second time, "Look! You're going to kill Lokir senselessly if I haven't interfered! Now you want to kill _me_ without knowing the situation! Again!" The shield thankfully withstood the combined magical attacks from the Thalmor. Danny did not want to use his powers to hurt humans, but he was really not sure whether the elves could be included in that category.

"Let's start over shall we?" Danny shouted over the sounds of magical discharge. "Hi! I'm Danny Phantom of…um Amity Park. Let me familiarize you with Skyrim's cold climate!" He lifted both hands, shot two beams from deep within his ice core – his beams overwhelmed the elves' attacks and slammed to their hands, freezing their palms upward to their upper arms. Danny floated toward them and froze their legs as well for a good measure.

He absently changed his wispy tail to legs back and landed on the ground. "I'm a ghost?" he said seeing their shocked expressions. "Have you ever met one? If not, then you…uh… have today. Ta da!" he added nervously.

It was Ralof, the blond guy who spoke to him in the cart, who found his voice first. "See elves! Imperials! Talos himself has sent the Stormcloaks help from above! Today is a marvelous day!"

The female captain who had sentenced Lokir and Danny struggled with her frozen legs. "Soldiers! What are you waiting for! The prisoners are out! Kill them!"

Danny saw that this was turning into another _political_ debacle between them. He crossed his arms and stated crossly, "Ugh, you know what? I'm done with this place! You guys are supposed to be video game characters in my world – which I'm now not sure I want to play. I swear when I saw the trailer there was a dragon fight or something fun here!" Danny shook his head in disappointment.

"I don' understand what you're saying, kid," said a voice unexpectedly from behind him. It was Lokir. "But I know dragons are supposed to be legend here. But heh! I saw _you_ today! And the Thalmors' getting their asses kicked! Must've drank too much," he said with a silly smile on his face.

"That's fine," Danny assured the poor thief on the ground. "Hey, any of you knows where to look for something involving destruction? I have a score to settle with someone named Destructo. Perhaps someone here was named _that_ or is there any deity—" Danny trailed off, as a roar was heard in the distance.

Everyone was looking around anxiously. Another roar was heard. Then, _amazingly,_ a real-life dragon landed on the tower to Danny's right.

Danny then decided that his experience with Dora's and Aragon's dragon ghost forms could not compare seeing a living, breathing dragon first hand.

A pandemonium reigned among the soldiers, prisoners, and the citizens of the city. The dragon roared again, and meteor fire started to rain down from the sky.

"That is one great big overgrown lizard," Danny whispered in amazement.

"I AM ALDUIN, THE DRAGON GOD OF DESTRUCTION. I HAVE RETURNED. HIN SIL FEN NAHKIP BAHLOKI(1)"

Danny rolled his eyes. _Duh. Wanna bet that's what I need to defeat to get to Destructo?_

Now according to common sense, the rational thing to do is to seek cover from the recently proclaimed god of destruction, as well as the dangerous fiery rain. However, Danny had stopped using that kind of logic ever since he shed away his fear of ghosts. Alduin, while bigger and blacker than many ghosts, was no more scary than the likes of the most dangerous ghosts Danny had fought. So he did the one thing that would cement the legend of Danny Phantom of Amity Park in the cold harsh land of Skyrim – until he got home that is.

"HEY YOU! I KNOW YOU'RE THERE DESTRUCTO! YES YOU BIG, UGLY OVERGROWN LIZARD! COME AND FACE ME! YOU'RE SO TOAST FOR SENDING ME HERE!

.

.

-Fin-

* * *

(1) meaning "YOUR SOUL WILL FEED MY HUNGER". It is in Dovahzul (Dragon Language). The dragons in the game speak like that.

 **Author's Note: Now this is an interesting story idea, don't you think? I could perhaps continue this into a separate crossover. :) I made Lokir alive! The game has him dead much too soon. And I'm afraid I would make Danny out of character for letting someone die when he can help. Somebody's got to tell him it's only a video game. :)  
**

 **Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoy this installment.**


	7. Day 24: Music

**Day 24 : Music  
**

 **Characters: Danny and Maddie**

 **Summary: When Danny came down with a flu, Maddie and her son had a bonding moment. Set after PP or whatever head canon you have as long as Maddie knows Danny's secret. Warning, extreme fluff and a bit of pointless plot.**

 **But I guarantee you'll have a small smile on your face afterwards... :)**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom, and _Whatever Happens_ is an underrated music credited to Michael Jackson.**

 **Story was also inspired by this image (link: e** ** **fraellkhmara. devianart. /**** ** ** ** **art/**** Like-mother-like-son-533889052) **from a devianart user, EfraellKhmara. Just eliminate the spaces after the dots, and add dot com before the first slash. It's a really beautiful and heart-warming pic.**

* * *

 _Whatever happens…don't let go of my hands_

Michael Jackson – Whatever Happens

...

The sound of the TV blared across the living room of the Fenton household, although it was currently ignored by the room's occupants.

"Of course, Mrs. Fenton," a man wearing a white coat, indicating his profession as a physician, assured as he lifted up his suitcase. "You can always contact my number if something else happens, although in this case, this is unlikely. Young Danny here has only exhibited the symptoms of a common flu. A perfectly _human_ common flu," he said as he peered over his black-rimmed glasses. "There is nothing to be worried about."

"I know, Dr. Smithson, and that's why I called you up as soon as Danny's ghostly allies," a shadow of a smile was playing on her lips as she said this, "confirmed the nature of the illness." Madeline "Maddie" Fenton, mother to a currently very sick boy who was lying on the couch, knew that the subject of Danny's ghostliness was somewhat of an uncomfortable topic for the old doctor.

He had been the family's trusted physician since she had her first pregnancy. She called him to check on Danny's vitals a month after the incident now known as the Disasteroid, after convincing Danny – who had refused vehemently – that they needed to get a professional opinion on his new health status seeing that the last check-up was when Danny was twelve. Her husband and she might be all-around scientific experts, but she knew that their expertise were more in the field of ecto-based energies rather than medical science.

The doctor had left their house, muttering words like "impossible", "not in the medical books", "he should be dead already", after the check-up. Maddie knew her son's half-ghost status alone had defied uncountable laws of science in her field of study. She could imagine what the good doctor was thinking after discovering that Danny's heart rate was much lower than the average human, as well as his running temperature which should have put him in an indeterminate period of hospital stay.

.

Danny was a living (ok, _half-living_ ), breathing medical miracle.

.

"Alright, then I'd like to excuse myself then," the doctor said, getting up and heading toward the door. "And remind Danny to take the tablets daily."

Maddie trailed behind him, "I'm sure you can send the bill to my husband's account, as per usual?"

"Certainly, ma'am," he said as he shook hand with her. "Have a nice day then, and I wish your son a swift recovery."

.

Maddie closed the front door. She walked to the cabinet to retrieve some more blankets and pillows, after seeing that despite the thin blanket he had brought out of his room, her son was slightly shivering in his slumber. With her arms full, she went nearer to the couch and deposited the pillows and blankets on the space beside Danny's head.

She kneeled beside the couch, bringing up a hand to her son's forehead. He was warm to the touch. His temperature was nearing 100 degrees, according to Dr. Smithson – a fact that she herself silently worried, given that for Danny, it was very feverish indeed. Danny shivered again. His face was flushed red due to the fever. Maddie frowned. She had first theorized that Danny could not get infected by a human sickness, at least to the extent he was now in. However, when her son had climbed down the stairs yesterday's morning, face haggard, shivering and coughing every few minutes, she had made him lie down on the couch. Lucky for them, it was Saturday – Danny did not have to go to school. It was also convenient that her husband Jack was away with Jazz for the weekend after a call from her university administration. Maddie was alone in handling this.

Brushing the dark locks away from Danny's face, she moved her hands to his shoulders and shook him gently. "Danny..."

Her son, for his part, only gave a slight twitch.

"Let's get you up to your room, sweetie," she murmured. "Doctor Smithson's already left a while ago."

She saw his hand grabbing the blanket, trying to bury himself further. Gently coercing him against the action, she said, "C'mon. I'll get you more blankets once you're upstairs, alright? The couch's not a good place for you to sleep in."

"'ere's fine," Danny suddenly mumbled, albeit a bit incomprehensively. "….room's too chilly."

"…I see, did you forget to close the windows again last night?"

Her son only replied with a slight nod, closing his half-opened eyes again.

She sighed. So Danny was handling the town's ghost problem even while being sick, late at night - a time when he should have got the rest he desperately needed instead. She should have expected this, but her motherly instincts were sometimes unable to reconcile the image of her sweet, relatively docile son to the feisty fighter Phantom was portrayed as. No wonder then that his condition today was not any better than yesterday.

Maddie could not find it in her heart to scold her baby boy for his actions. Not after everything that happened. How could she, when she had little to no knowledge to what had been going on in his life? How could see, being so blind and so caught up on her own profession that she had forgotten being his mother, not noticing what was happening with her son? No, her son knew what he was doing. She, on the other hand, would now be by his side. She would make it up to him.

.

Standing up, she resorted to let her son sleep in the couch. Their living room was relatively warmer after all without the exposure to the winter wind Danny's room in the second floor had.

She finally decided to re-arrange her son's position so that he would be more comfortable. Taking some of the pillows and laying them down on her lap, she gently positioned Danny's head so that he was lying on her lap. With her right hand, she took the fluffy blankets from the couch and tucked her son in it – taking away his thin blanket with some difficulty. She should probably get rid of that soon.

Despite her efforts to be gentle, Danny stirred awake.

"…..Mom? What ya doin'?" he slurred, eyes opening half-lidded with obvious exhaustion. Even though so, Maddie felt a sense of accomplishment seeing his body recognized the sudden warmth from the blanket, and him promptly snuggling into it.

"Sssssh," she said soothingly, "Go back to sleep, honey." She turned her eyes to the TV that was still playing some advertisement that Maddie did not bother to discern, while her hands absently played with his hair.

She felt rather that saw Danny's head moving to the side. "'m not a baby," he grumbled. If his eyes were open fully, Maddie was sure that her son would be rolling his eyes. His action, however, belied his words, as he proceeded to curl up on his side into a semi-fetal position. She had to hold back her giggles seeing that.

"I know. Humor your old mother before she gets too old to hold you like this, okay?" said Maddie.

He snorted into his blanket. "…you're not old, mom," replied Danny, the sound muffled by the blanket he had buried half of his face in.

Smiling down at him, she stated fondly, "—and you're always be my sweet baby boy, Danny," she paused, "…whatever happens."

He responded by gripping her hand and giving it a tight squeeze, a gesture that made Maddie's heart soared.

Then she saw _it_.

.

From the corner of her eye, she spied a news report describing Phantom's – _her son! Her mind corrected –_ latest exploit, which was done last night at around 2 a.m. Maddie's attention was suddenly focused on the television.

It was displaying an aerial battle, obviously taken by somebody's phone camera judging from the quality of the video, between her son and a shadowy ghost. The shadowy ghoul was apparently not one to banter with, for its mouth was in the form of a dark hole which emitted loud hissy sounds in an unrecognizable manner, heard even from where the video taker was recording. Danny, in his ghost form with a thermos on his belt, was shown dodging the horrid claws of the creature, and shooting concentrated balls of ectoplasm from his hands, hitting the black mass with every shot.

But a mother's eyes could pick out clear signs of exhaustion and the illness that her son was harboring. Then she almost shouted in distress when her son got clawed in the shoulder. It was just a flesh wound, but even at the video's considerable distance, she could see ectoplasm coming out of the clawed wound.

The video ended with Danny leading the ghost away from the city's center, the fate of the ghost unknown – Maddie had a good guess that it was under his bed, inside his thermos. The camera was recording the trail left by the two spirits in the form of a rather spectacular display of green lights illuminating the night sky.

"As you can see from the clip, there has been an overnight battle between Phantom and a recurring ghost identified as 'Shadow', an accomplice of another prominent ghost named Johnny the Thirteen, according to the Ghost Filing Report from the Amity Police Department. The result of the battle remained unknown, but our contact from the Department stated that there were no incidents of sudden and unexplained bad luck befalling the citizens of Amity Park since this morning."

"We can all assume, Tiffany—" narrated her male co-anchor, "—that our ghost-hero Phantom has already taken care of the problem. Of course, just to be on the safe side, we advise you viewers to avoid breaking any mirror or crossing path with a black cat today!" he joked cheerfully.

"We will come back to this with an exclusive report from Officer Lane who is deputy-in-charge for ghost-related activities. Related to this news, we also received a report of another ghost known as 'the Box Ghost' terrorizing the city's docks at approximately ten-hundred hours today. Curiously, Phantom was nowhere to be seen. The dock authority fortunately called up a team of security to deal with the ghost."

"This certainly raises a question, doesn't it? Danny Phantom has made himself scarce for the past few days. One ought to wonder what he is doing, especially after the ghost attacks this morning were left unattended."

.

 _Click._

 _._

Maddie's shaking hand had unconsciously reached for the remote on the table and turned off the TV swiftly. She was fuming inside. How _dare_ they? Oh how she was going to march up to the studio and kicked all of their butts – she would ensure a special treatment for those two anchors. They had no right to be _that_ ungrateful after what Danny had done for them, after what Danny had _sacrificed_ for them. Hadn't he already made it obvious that he was also human, a school boy nonetheless, who had other responsibilities aside from ghost hunting?

Her son was sick for heaven's sake! He had already chosen to get out of his well-needed rest to help them last night, therefore making himself sicker by the day. And what ghost attacks!? It was just the Box Ghost…

One moment Danny faltered and not became the perfect hero the town wanted, they were already intent on casting him out.

.

...and she realized how stupid her and the rest of the town were during the Masters' Blasters incident;

 _as well as_ when Danny became the public enemy number one;

 _as well as_ when they were more inclined to believe the worst in him stealing the bank rather than the glaring evidence of Freakshow being the one apprehended.

.

Again, all her insecurities of her own actions against her son, which had been plaguing her ever since he revealed himself, overwhelmed her. She could not help but let out a sob, tears blurring her eyes as she slowly put down the TV remote she had been gripping tightly.

Danny shifted in his sleep. "Mom?" he asked, turning his head to better look at his distressed mother.

"I'm sorry, baby," Maddie sobbed, "I'm so very sorry."

Alarmed by the sudden distress, Danny was immediately wide awake, all soreness forgotten. "What's wrong? Did something happen?" His too warm hands found his mother's.

"….no," coughed Maddie, gradually getting her emotions back under control. She forced a smile, "…nothing's wrong. I'm just having a bout of my melodramatic moments," she said with a feeble laugh.

Danny did not look convinced. He was eyeing her questioningly for a moment. "…okay, if you say so, mom." Then he yawned. "I don't know why I'm so tired," he paused, "…and sore," he shivered, "…and cold. Being sick sucks," he finished despondently.

"Maybe it has something to do with your late-night activity last night?"

She held back a smile at the deer-in-headlights look her son had in his face. "Oh," he breathed. "You know that?"

Maddie gestured at the now blank TV. "It's just in the news." She muttered with a scowl, "Stupid press not giving you a break. Box Ghost was by the dock this morning, and they blamed you for not being there. The situation's been handled by the dock authority, don't worry," she continued hastily seeing her son's expression.

Danny would have by now gotten up if Maddie's hands were not holding him down by his shoulders. "Mom," he addressed with a small smile, "You know the press's always going to be like that," he said with a shrug. "Plenty of experience here, and it's always been the same every single time."

"I know," Maddie said sadly.

He seemed to realize that his words might be interpreted as a guilt trip for his mother. "Umm, you know I've said it times and times again, right mom? I never blame you for anything. You're not…," he paused as he started to realize the cause of his mother's earlier distress, "…still beating yourself because of _that_ , right? Jeez, now I know Tucker's totally wrong saying _my_ guilt complex comes from Dad."

"Your father treats fudge and cookies as instant gratifiers."

"…true." Danny reached a hand for the remote – a bit of a challenge considering his current position. "How about if I'll just…put on some songs, mom?" he asked as he fiddled with the remote, trying to turn on the radio which was built up as a mode inside the TV system. He yawned for what seemed to be the hundredth time the past few days, "I'm gunna need my beauty sleep."

.

The sound of the radio blared across the living room – and this time, the occupants enjoyed it in a companionable silence. Maddie saw her son was slowly drifting off to sleep. Looking down at her hands which were still on his shoulders, she jumped as she realized something important.

"Your shoulder!"

Danny grunted, opening up one eye. Maddie paid no heed. She swiped aside the blanket, opened up the top buttons of her son's pajamas, and brushed her hand over the healing scar in the clawed shoulder.

.

Wait. Healing scar?

.

"It's okay," Danny's voice sounded reassuring to her, "Fast healing via ghost powers is really useful, especially since I spent the morning in my ghost form, mom. That's also partly why my room is really chilly," he added sheepishly.

"Sweetie," she said as a sudden inspiration struck her, "do you know if you can heal the flu faster while in your ghost form?"

"I dunno. I've never tried it before, but when I was ghost earlier, I didn't feel as sore, and the coughing stopped by the morning." Danny's face regained some of its healthy glow as he brightened, "Hey, what d'you know? Maybe it works. Although," he paused, "I feel a lot – I mean a _lot_ – colder in my ghost form, mom."

"It actually doesn't really make sense, you know? You, a half-ghost, feel cold."

"Yeah, I know," Danny laughed lightly. "I even have ice powers! Talk about weapons hitting their masters. Brrrrrr!" he exclaimed, emphasizing his slight shivers with a sound.

"Well, can you please try… changing into your ghost form, Danny? It's worth trying. I will fetch up more blankets if you still feel too cold," she said, indicating the stack of blankets still left on the couch.

"…Okay." And without preamble, the white rings of transformation washed over Danny's form. Maddie felt slight goosebumps on her skin as the rings also washed over her due to her close proximity to her son.

"I call it 'going ghost' by the way," Danny said with a slight smile, before yawning and closing his glowing eyes, turning sideways to snuggle into his mom's stomach. His voice had a slight echoing quality that Maddie was getting more and more used of. Maddie ran her hands through his now snowy locks, smiling softly along the way.

.

The radio started playing a slow-rock song. Maddie found herself nodding off with the soothing beats of the song.

 _He gives another smile, tries to understand her side_

 _To show that he cares_

 _She can't stay in the room_

 _She's consumed with everything that's been goin' on_

 _She says whatever happens, don't let go of my hand_

 _._

Danny was apparently still not fully asleep, because she saw his fingers were still tapping with along the beats of the music. But then, she saw something that made her completely unable to hold back her giggles.

Danny's legs had apparently disappear to be replaced by a long wispy tail, only partially obscured by the blanket – and the black wispy thing was wagging along the beats of the music as well.

 _Left. Right. Left. Right._ Her eyes were following its progression with a high degree of amusement. Unable to hold her curiosity, she reached out a hand and tried to catch the peculiar appendage. Its end was surprisingly solid under her fingers, but at the same time emitting the black ethereal quality she had expected. Twirling the thin end between her fingers, she felt Danny gave a jerk. That solved the growing question in her mind whether it had some nerves end or not.

.

The song reached its final verse.

 _Whatever happens, just don't let go of, my hand._

 _._

 _._

"Mom, please let go of my tail...this is awkward."

* * *

 **Author's Note: Sorry, I don't know what came over me when I wrote this. I know the prompt is "music", and I swear I got it all focused on music in my head...but somewhere along the process, it got lost D:  
**

 **And did ya get the metaphor around the words "let go"? Did ya? DID YA?**

 ***eye twitches***

 **Soooo, hope you enjoy this installment, and thank YOU so much for the reviews NoSignalBlueScreen! Your kind encouragement and suggestion have really made my day! (Several days actually ;D)**

 **Thank you as well for the faves and follows! :D :D :D**

 **Cheers!**


	8. Day 25: Accident

**Day 25 : Accident**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own DP, so don't sue me coz I'd like to finish my college :)**

 **.**

 **Summary: Set after TUE. Jazz asked Danny, "How did it happen?" Then after Danny explained the accident to her, she mused. Was it really an accident, or was it fate?**

* * *

"So," Blue eyes looking up at the red head who was closing the door behind her, "How long have you known?"

"About the test? For days," Jazz smiled down at her brother while sitting down next to him. Their talk was overdue, especially after Lancer had made it known to her brother that she was the one behind the idea of the make-up CAT. Jazz thought that her little brother definitely deserved that considerate gesture, though. She was beyond proud when she saw him ultimately refusing the urge to cheat.

It looked like Jazz was not the only one maturing in the family, then she proceeded to told him exactly how she felt.

Danny shook his head, "No, not that. Your headband, your note—" as he pulled out the said items out of his pocket, "—your handwriting…."

Staring at the items, Jazz thought quickly. "What? That? I didn't write that…and there must be dozens of headbands." Then again, she was never confident with her lying abilities.

Immediately, Danny saw through her ruse—or was it that Danny had known and planned this conversation all along?

Gently taking the note and headband, Jazz began softly, "Since the Spectra thing," answering the silent question reflected in the blue irises of her little brother. "I didn't want to tell you until you wanted to tell me," she explained, inwardly cringing at how _she_ ended up being the one confessing to him; she had always imagined the scenario with her brother finally trusting her enough to come clean. It would have been good for his psyche. "It's your secret."

Then Danny conveyed all the gratitude he felt for her keeping the secret – and ultimately saving his life when the time came – with one single smile which brightened his entire countenance. "Well…it's our secret now."

With that, Jazz felt an intangible bond solidified between the two siblings, mending all the rifts caused as they were growing up: Jazz distancing herself from the family, and consequently her brother, due to her embarrassment and academic aspiration; Danny thinking his sister as too overbearing as he increasingly lived under her shadow; and finally, all the secrecy of Danny's ghost half and Jazz's knowledge of her brother's secret.

They hugged.

.

.

"Hey Danny," Jazz called in a sudden realization. "Have you ever considered that the accident with the portal, is not that much of an accident to begin with?"

It was already nightfall. She went home after her brother took off to fight the tentacle monster they met after their little talk. Her whole body was dripping with ectoplasm – due to her being the unfortunate bystander – making her feel wet, sticky, and simply disgusted at herself. So the first destination on her mind was a nice long shower upstairs.

Nevertheless, now that the secret between them was open, it was in her nature to be immensely curious about how did _it_ happen in the first place. How was it possible that her little brother became a ghost?

Thus, when Danny went home, she immediately ushered him to her room.

"Huh?" Danny answered quite eloquently, as he balanced himself precariously on the edge of Jazz's desk table. "You mean I had entered the portal with every intention to be electrocuted to half-death?" He smirked.

"No, that's not what I mean," Jazz rolled her eyes. "I've given a lot of thought on this one. It's theoretically not possible for someone to be alive after being charged with what must have been a thousand of volts inside that machine."

"—hence my half-dead status, Jazz."

"And how does being half-dead technically work anyway?" she interrupted as if he had not spoken. "Not that I'm not thankful that my baby brother's alive of course."

"You sure have a way of expressing your encouragement."

"Think about it, Danny. You also told me about Clockwork. Now that confirms my theory that there's someone out there _meant_ it to happen. How else were you electrocuted just _enough_ to achieve the perfect balance between life and death? What if there's just one volt in excess then you're dead? Or even there's one volt less and you just came out disfigured and unable to function – cause that usually happened to electrocuted victims. What if—"

"—Jazz, Jazz! If we think about the what ifs," interrupted Danny who saw that his sister was getting into what he termed as her "spazzy moments", in private, of course, "then we're not getting anywhere. Come on, I've already tried the why me path in the first month, when my powers were in a fritz. Trust me, it's not pretty."

He remembered when he was trying so hard to get rid of his newfound powers, only to find that whenever he willed them to go away, they would just reveal themselves in vengeance. Some body parts – especially his arms and legs – would go intangible in the most inconvenient situations, such as when he was in the Chem class. He would go invisible accidentally when Mr. Lancer droned about some priced literatures he had not bothered to read about.

Thankfully, when he had accepted them as a part of his life, his control of them dramatically improved.

"That's exactly what I said!" stated Jazz rather triumphantly. Crossing her arms, she explained, "Most people would have started going around the world by flying, or getting a lot of money by robbing a bank, or possessing people to do their wills, or even checking out girls' locker room by the first month. They were not going to agonize over the fact that they can walk through walls, disappear and fly."

"Well, the disappearing parts occurred so much more than the other two, Jazz, and you can't say that it wasn't scary seeing your arm disappear and you don't know whether it'll come back or not," said Danny, trying to hide his blush hearing the "girls' locker room" part.

"That's why you're not like most people, little brother. And someone out there, God and even Clockwork, decided to make you survive the portal accident and make you a half-ghost. There's nothing that is a coincidence, Danny."

Danny laughed lightly, making a placating gesture toward her sister. "Okay, okay. Let's just go by your theory then."

"That's not to mention," she paced the room as a new idea began to form in her head, "Sam and Tucker. How _convenient_ is it for you that Tucker happened to be a technological genius who's capable of hacking the FBI if he's required to do so? How _convenient_ is it that Sam is one of the richest girls in Amity Park who's able to support Tucker with the technology and cover up any emergency supply you guys need? And of course, there's me now," she ended with a smile.

"Yeah yeah. We are very lucky to have our resident genius who's gonna help us with homework, Jazz," Danny said teasingly.

"Hey! How could you put me in _homework duties_?" Jazz exclaimed incredulously, but the smile was still on her face.

"You want to know what I think about this?" Danny asked as he stretched and began to rise up from his position. "You put too many thoughts into this. You made my life sound like a freaking cartoon! Oh yes, let's put one convenient plot here, put another there. Yeah," he rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's get some ice cream downstairs."

Jazz laughed, as she followed her brother out of the room. "Sure, but you know that I'm right."

"You're _always_ right, Jazz," he replied snarkily.

"Hush, you," she reached out to mess with his hair, but Danny ducked at the last second.

"By the way, I still don't agree you saying I'm not like other people. I'm completely ordinary, thank you very much, with the exception of having ghost powers," he added hurriedly seeing she was about to interrupt. "Nope, not a freak here."

"I'm not saying that you're a freak, Danny," Jazz said softly. "It's fine to be extraordinary. And I know you're getting tired of me saying this, but I'm very proud of you, little brother, and I'll always be with you whatever you do, be it ordinary or extraordinary."

"Are you sure? It's not like you'll be with me and Tucker next weekend to check out the new pool in town. I'm sure you won't enjoy the visuals as much as me and Tucker in the girls' locker room," he added with a wide grin.

Jazz gaped at him for a moment. Danny took the opportunity to quickly bounce down the stairs in order to avoid the explosion which would inevitably happen.

"I'll take back what I said!" Jazz exclaimed. "Ugh," she muttered to herself, "boys will be boys."

.

"DANNY!" she shouted at the direction of the kitchen. "YOU'RE JUST KIDDING, RIGHT?"

"GUESS YOURSELF!" laughed Danny in reply.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I'm terribly sorry for the long delay. Although, I promise I'm gonna do all the prompts to the best of my ability. Please be patient with me. :') After all, sometimes speed doesn't matter (since May is already finished anyway), forward is forward!**

 **Hope you enjoy this installment.**


	9. Author's Note

Hello dear readers!

I would like to apologize for not updating this story, as well as for not finishing the challenge. I had been so swamped with college works and real life. Another reason is because I somehow lost my muse with the prompt "Summoning" (Day 26). You see, I'm a Christian and was raised in a firm Christian household. I am not at all familiar with the occult and am not willing to approach the subject heheh.

Therefore, I am closing this one-shot challenges and will mark it as "Complete". I have future plans to write more DP fics, considering the mass amount of plot bunnies jumping in my head these days. Your support and encouragement have meant a lot to me as a _noob_ writer. Thank you very much for all the reviews, faves and alerts!

Let's bring more quality fics to the DP _phandom_ , shall we? ;)

Cheers!

P/S: This might be already old news to the phandom, but is anyone else excited after seeing **that** 10 years later pic of Danny, Sam and Tuck? AND the hints Butch Hartman has been giving lately in his channels? I'm also following David Kaufman's channel and guess what. He posted a pic of him being in Nick's recording studio doing **something...** but it "may not be what we think" he captioned. Damn.

As a relatively new DP fan, I have to ask...is this what you guys felt the whole time some rumors said that DP is being revived? Warily cautious yet excited? Have to admit that it's a bit uncomfortable feeling those two emotions at the same time. Nevertheless, considering where I live, only God knows when the show would arrive in my channels IF it was being revived. *sigh*


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